ROBERT WILLIAMS BUCHANAN (1841 - 1901)

ROBERT BUCHANAN’S LETTERS TO CHATTO & WINDUS

1. 1881 - 1882.

1. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 30th January [1881].

5 Larkhall Rise
Clapham
Jan. 30.

Dear Sir,

                   In accordance with M^r Watt’s request, I shall meet him to-morrow (Monday) at your offices at 1 p.m., for the purpose of signing agreement &c. about the “Martyrdom of Madeline”. I am very glad you like the story; I believe it will be my best.

                   Yours truly
                   Robert Buchanan.

Andrew Chatto Esq.

[Collection page no. 22.
‘(Monday)’ inserted between ‘to-morrow’ and ‘at your offices’.
‘at 1 p.m.,’ inserted between ‘at your offices’ and ‘for the purpose’.

This letter appears in the collection after the ‘Agreement’ (item no. 6), presumably because Buchanan’s novel, The Martyrdom of Madeline was published after God and the Man. However, I believe this to be the earliest item since the Buchanan family was living at 5 Larkhall Rise, Clapham from the autumn of 1880, prior to their move to Southend sometime in the spring of 1881. There is a letter from G. R. Sims from this address dated 5th December 1880, and further confirmation is given in the letter itself with the reference to “to-morrow (Monday)” - the 31st January 1881 was a Monday.
‘Mr. Watt’ I believe was A. P. Watt - who, according to this article in The Wilkie Collins Journal, was employed by Chatto & Windus in connection with selling the serial rights of their novels.]

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2. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 6th August [1881].

2 Devereux Terrace
Southend
Aug^t 6

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   I send enclosed Vol 1 of ‘God & the Man’; I will post Vol 2, corrected for press, to-morrow, & also the ‘Child of Nature.’

                   Truly yours
                   R. Buchanan.

A. Chatto Esq.

[Collection page no. 8.

A Child of Nature had been published by Richard Bentley & Son in March, 1881. Bentley published a second edition in April, and a third in May, 1881.]

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3. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 22nd September [1881].

Southend
Sept 22

Dear Sir,

           Enclosed I send you half Vol 3; the concluding half is being set up for the mag^ne, & proof will be handed to you & M^r Watt directly it is printed. I could not prepare to copies.
         Enclosed are copy of titlepage dedication &c. I presume also, you will permit to advertise my other stories facing titlepage.
         If you agree with me that the title is a forbidding one, might it not yet be altered? The heading of pages would not matter. I should not like the popularity of the book to be affected by so simple a matter —
         Please post sheets of the two first vols, & proofs of enclosed, to me as under:

‘Care of Miss Margaret Young
     171 West Regent Street
         Glasgow —

where I shall be after to-morrow until the end of next week.
         Annexed is an extract which you might, if desirable, use in your preliminaries.
         Is the “Child of Nature” ready?

                   Truly yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

A. Chatto Esq

         If ‘C. of N.’ is not published or ready, I should like the adv of “Romance,” to face its titlepage also

[Collection page no. 9.
An indecipherable word, underlined and diagonally written in another hand, in top left hand corner. Other letters in the collection contain similar notes (presumably by Andrew Chatto) usually referring to when the letter was received or answered.
‘proof’ inserted between ‘&’ and ‘will be handed’.

God and the Man was serialised in the Day of Rest magazine, published by Strahan & Co., from January to December, 1881.
Harriett Jay was appearing with George Rignold’s company in Clancarty at the Grand Theatre, Glasgow from 26th September to 1st October, 1881. ]

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4. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 7th October [1881].

38 Queen Anne St
Cavendish Sq
Oct 7

Dear Sirs,

                   Please address as above until further notice.
         All proofs returned herewith.

                   Yours truly
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus

[Collection page no. 220.
This letter and the one that follows, both occur at the end of the collection among items which have not been assigned a proper place in the chronology. I believe they should be placed here, since the address is referred to in the postscript of item no. 6.]

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5. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 15th October [1881].

38 Queen Anne Street
Cavendish Square
                   W.
Oct 15

Dear Sirs,

                   I return the note, which was delayed owing to my absence from home. If not too late, I should like it printed in much smaller type.
         Have you devised anything particular for the binding of this work? It should be to a certain extent suggestive –

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

         Kindly send me a list of news papers to which you propose sending copies. I might suggest some additions or subtractions—where favorable reviews would be probable, or the reverse.

[Collection page no. 221.
A word has been written above ‘copies’ then crossed out.]

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6. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 20th October [1881].

Southend
Oct 20

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   Your telegram received. One or two of the pictures must be omitted, as they seriously damage the story; the others may remain, & so you will be enabled to keep faith with the public. These illustrations, however, have been a constant annoyance to me during the progress of the story; none are good, & some are monstrous. The frontispiece, or first picture, is the best.
         I will endeavour to see you, & point out what I mean.
         I return you the list of newspapers, adding one or two. Please oblige me by not sending to the Athenæum—a journal which has for many years been malignant towards me—I mean, specially & personally malignant.

                   Yours faithfully
                   Robert Buchanan.

Andrew Chatto Esq.

         I presume I may have a few private copies. How many do you usually allow?

         Where I have added a name, please address the copy to that name, at the office of the paper. — Please address mail as before—38 Queen Anne St. I am only temporarily here.

[Collection page no. 10 and 11.
Second P.S. on separate page, presumably referring to the list of newspapers (missing).
‘mail’ inserted between ‘address’ and ‘as before’.

God and the Man was published by Chatto & Windus in November, 1881 (advertised in The Times 7th November, 1881). ]

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7. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 29th November [1881].

38 Queen Anne St
Cavendish Square
Nov. 29

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   In our hasty talk to day I quite omitted to suggest the form in which I should like the poems issued—ie—in a popular edition at a popular price, with some of the illustrations which have from time to time appeared to them (in books & magazines &c.) but which would be quite new. I think the blocks would certainly add to their popularity, as they are first rate & by first-rate artists. E.g. I enclose Houghton’s frontispiece to “St Abe.” My aim is to reach the great general public, to which my poems specially appeal, but have hitherto, no doubt, found the price rather high.
         I have also a good frontispiece by Arthur Hughes &c. for the Ballads I left with you to-day.
         Trusting you will be able to meet my views, & assuring you again of my belief that these works will sell largely, I am—till to-morrow –

                   Yours truly
                   Robert Buchanan.

A. Chatto Esq

         I am quite agreeable to take a royalty on the sale of the Works, provided the immediate matter of money—as discussed by us—can be adjusted, as I hope.

[Collection page no. 12 - 15.
The first page of the letter has a black border. Buchanan’s wife, Mary, after a battle with cancer that lasted over a year, died on 7th November, 1881 and was buried at Southend on 13th November. Two more letters from early November 1881 to F.J. Furnivall are available on this site.
‘by Arthur Hughes’ inserted between ‘frontispiece by’ and ‘&c. for the Ballads”.
Buchanan’s sign-off is partially blotted and ‘I am’ seems to be corrected to read ‘I remain’.
P.S. on separate page.

Attached to the letter are the following:
Title page of “Saint Abe and His Seven Wives”.
Illustration from “Saint Abe and His Seven Wives” (London: Strahan & Co. Third edition (illustrated). 1872.)
Chatto & Windus did not use any illustrations in The Poetical Works, published in 1884, apart from a portrait of Buchanan. However Ballads of Life, Love, and Humour, published in 1882, did have a frontispiece (of the poem ‘Vanity Fair’) by Arthur Hughes.]

8. Proposed Agreement between Chatto & Windus and Robert Buchanan. 3rd December, 1881.

Agreement between C & W. & M^r. Buchanan dated 3^rd. Dec. 1881 for original purchase of copyrights of Poems, does expressly include the copyright of “Ballads of Life and Humour”

Messrs Chatto & Windus to advance to M^r Buchanan, in cash or bills of exchange, the sum of £300.
         In equivalent for this sum, M^r Buchanan gives Messrs C & W. the right of publishing the following immediately:

1. Ballads of Life, Love, & Humour (in type)
2. “St Abe” & “White Rose & Red” (new edition)

Of ‘St. Abe’ five editions have already been sold, & four of W. R. & R.
A cheap combined edition would be exceptionally popular.

3. M^r Buchanan’s complete Poems, as named in enclosed advertisement. A new Edition, which can be inexpensively prepared from the stereos, with slight editions.

Of London Poems & Idyls of Inverburn, first editions, several thousands were sold respectively.
The Book of Orm is in growing demand, in religious circles especially. —Of the collected edition, 3 vols, published in 1876, an edition of 750 copies (sets) has been sold, making 2250 copies—at 6/ a volume. The stereos, plates, &c. belong to M^r Buchanan.

4. For the Mayfair or Wanderer’s Library,

A Poet’s Sketchbook –
The Land of Lorne –
     The last was issued in 2 vols, has not yet been issued in cheap form,
     & is well-known as a picturesque book of Lorne travel.

____________________

The arrangement to be that Messrs. C & W. advance the above sum on the security of these works, to be issued at their pleasure on the half profit system—with this corollary, that in the event of any loss on these publications, it is to be recouped out of the price of a new book on America, to be published by Messrs Chatto & Windus next summer, & to be similar in idea to Heine’s “Germany”—taking cogniscence of the homelife, politics, literature &c. of the American people.

Owing to the success of M^r Buchanan’s quasi-American writings, & his acquaintance with leading Americans, this work will in all likelihood be a great success.

____________________

[Collection page no. 16 - 19.
The first page (which consists of the title of the document) is not written by Buchanan, but probably by Andrew Chatto.
At the top of the first page the word, ‘Copy’ has been crossed out.
The rest of the document (from ‘Messrs Chatto & Windus to advance’) is in Buchanan’s hand, though is not signed.
On the final page, a word has been crossed out between ‘recouped out of the’ and ‘of a new book’ and ‘price’ has been written above.
A word (possibly ‘could’) has been crossed out between ‘this work’ and ‘in all likelihood’ and ‘will’ has been written above.

Of the works mentioned in this agreement Chatto & Windus published Ballads of Life, Love and Humour and new editions of Idyls and Legends of Inverburn, The Book of Orm, St. Abe and His Seven Wives and White Rose and Red in 1882, as well as an edition of Selected Poems. In 1883 a new edition of London Poems appeared, as well as Undertones (Buchanan’s first book of poetry which was not mentioned in the agreement). A new edition of The Land of Lorne (its title changed to The Hebrid Isles: wanderings in the Land of Lorne and the Outer Hebrides) was published in 1882, with a second edition the following year. A Poet’s Sketch-Book. Selections from the prose writings of Robert Buchanan was published in 1883, and The Poetical Works in 1884.
The book about America never materialised. Buchanan visited America in 1884 but, according to a letter to Augustin Daly, the New York theatrical manager, he was contemplating a trip as early as April, 1881.]

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9. Letter to Chatto & Windus from Spottiswoode & Co. 2nd February, 1882.

SPOTTISWOODE & C^o.
PRINTERS, LITHOGRAPHERS AND
LAW STATIONERS.
NEW STREET SQUARE,
LONDON E.C.
Feb. 2 1882

Dear Sirs

                   We beg to inform you that we have moulds of Vols. 1 to 3 of Buchanan’s Poems, but hold no stereo plates of his Works.

                   Yrs faithfully
                   Spottiswoode & Co

Messrs Chatto & Windus

[Collection page no. 24.
Printed letterhead.

Buchanan’s Poetical Works were published 1874 by Henry S. King and Co. in three volumes. An advert in The Graphic of 4th February, 1874 also mentions two volumes of Prose Works (“Robert Buchanan’s Poetical and Prose Works. Collected Edition. 5 vols.”) but these never appeared.
A brief explanation of stereos and moulds is available on wikipedia.]

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10. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 2nd March [1882].

16 Langham St
Portland Place
                   W.
March 2

Dear Sirs,

                   I shall send or bring to-morrow morning early all, or nearly all, the proofs in my possession.
         Kindly note change of address.

                   Truly yours
                   R. Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 209.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
There’s an illustration of a hand pointing to the address (which is a bit of a novelty for Buchanan, hence the picture above).
Another letter from the ’unassigned’ section of the collection. However, there is another letter with the same address (in the National Library of Scotland collection) to the Rev. Frederick Langbridge, dated 7th March, which mentions Chatto & Windus taking over Buchanan’s copyrights, so I have placed this here.]

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11. Letter to Chatto & Windus. Undated.

Dear Sirs,

                   (1) Please take off the chapter from Vol I. as you suggest. (2) “Vanity Fair” is the proper inscription for picture to Ballads.

                   Truly yours
                   R. Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 218.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
No date and no address (from the ’unassigned’ section) but ‘Vanity Fair’ is the frontispiece of Ballads of Life, Love and Humour, which was published by Chatto & Windus in March, 1882 (advertised in The Times 23rd March). The omitted chapter is probably from The Martyrdom of Madeline, which was published in three volumes in May, 1882.]

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12. Letter to K. Hynch. Undated.

Dear Sir,

                   Proofs enclosed – Should have sent all as promised, but have been very ill, caused by worry & anxiety – Entire book will be posted this evening.
         Please observe that the corrections are in pencil, & very important

                   Yours truly
                   R. Buchanan.

K. Hynch Esq.

[Collection page no. 211.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
No date and no address (from the ’unassigned’ section) but the only other letter in the collection to the indecipherable Mr. Hynch (or Birch or ?), presumably an employee of Chatto & Windus, so I have placed it here.]

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13. Letter to K. Hynch. 19th [March 1882].

12 Buckingham Palace Rd
19^th

Dear Sir,

                   Ever since my Telegram of yesterday, I have been looking hourly, momently, for the 3 sheets required. Pray send them at once. The corrections throughout are of vital importance—nor can the book appear without them.

                   Truly yours
                   R. Buchanan.

K. Hynch Esq.

[Collection page no. 25.
This is the first in a sequence of letters from this address, written in the spring of 1882, so ‘March’ merely brings it in line with the next in the sequence.]

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14. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 22nd March [1882].

12 Buckingham Palace Road
                             SW.
March 22.

Dear Sirs,

                   Enclosed I send you (after a long hunt) 3 pictures from North Coast. Dalziels have the electros. I think the one marked A. would do best.

                   Yours truly
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 26.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
In the top left-hand corner ‘B’ is written sideways, in another hand.

This letter presumably refers to the illustration from the poem, ‘Meg Blane’, originally published in North Coast, which was chosen as the frontispiece for the Chatto and Windus edition of Selected Poems, published in 1882. The picture in question is available here.]

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15. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 23rd April [1882].

12 Buckingham Palace Rd
                             S.W.
April 23.

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   The failure of my drama, on which I had staked so much, has so broken my peace of mind, that I wish to go away at once into the wilderness, & see what solitude & quiet thought will do to restore me. The stage is a will-of-the wisp, from which I want to divert my gaze, for some time at least.
         As matters are now pretty clear between us, I wish you to show your faith in my powers by agreeing to enclosed proposition. This time last year you trusted me to a much greater extent, advancing £300 on Madeline, and £250 on God & the Man, both uncompleted works. Unless they have grievously disappointed you, you have perhaps no less confidence than you had then.
         With regard to the Gent. Mag., I want you to help both me & yourself. Having the opportunity, I desire to do something really great for that serial, and if I do it from month to month, I can do myself unusual justice. By publishing Foxglove Manor first, & letting me attempt a masterpiece for the magazine, slowly & carefully wrought out, you will ensure a work with all the strength I possess.
         As to the City of Dream, I dont like to blow my own trumpet, but I only wish I could impress you, as I am myself impressed, with the importance of that work. Of this I am convinced—that no work of equal magnitude & daring has been attempted in this generation. I am perfectly certain that it will mark an epoch in my literary career, & quadruple my popularity. But, I hear you say, ‘it is poetry!’ So it is, but poetry on a theme which interests every modern man who thinks & feels.
         However, great as it my faith in this opus, I dont want you to risk anything on it. I am quite content to await the result—certain that the thought & labour of 15 years will not be thrown away.
         But put your confidence in me to the extent of this fresh £250, & I will undertake:
         1. To publish Foxglove Manor in the autumn.
         2. Also City of Dream.
         3. To begin delivering you, on 1^st June, such a story as will transcend all my previous efforts in fiction, & make a success for both the mag^ne & myself.
         To do this, I must get away from this worry & hurly-burly at once, & busy myself, with pen and books, far away in the solitude. Last year I was sadly hampered by domestic sorrow; this year, I hope to work as I have not worked for years before—with, I hope, golden results.
         Of course you will not be out of pocket, as before the bills come due, the works will be completed. To make certain, and bearing in mind a suggestion you threw out when making large advances last year, I will place a life assurance policy in your hands.
         Pray see your way to meeting me in this matter, & rely on my good faith. I will do myself the pleasure of calling upon you to-morrow, & hope to receive a favorable reply.
         With kind regards

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Andrew Chatto Esq.

         The enclosed letters may interest you.

                   B.

Proposition

1. Messrs Chatto & Windus are to advance M^r Buchanan a sum of £250, in a Bill at 6 mo^s, to be renewed, if required, for 6 mo^s more.
2. The story, Foxglove Manor, is to be completed and pub^d in October of present year. The new religious work, The City of Dream, is to be pub^d in August or Sept^r in 2 vols.
3. The sum of £250 is payment for the copyright of Foxglove Manor - The City of Dream is to be pub^d on half profits –
4. With regard to the sum previously paid for F. M. (serial & all rights) it is to stand as payment for a new story to run through Gent. Mag. This story is to be delivered in 12 monthly instalments, commencing 1^st June next—& into it M^r Buchanan guarantees to put all his strength.
5. If required, M^r Buchanan will hand to Messrs Chatto & Windus a life policy for £500, to be held as security in case of death, and to be handed back on completion of all engagements made up to present date.

                   B.

[On the reverse, in another hand.]

Mr Buchanan to write a new novel for C & W commencing the delivery of the first monthly part on 1st of June next and the succeeding eleven monthly parts on the first of each following month.
The price for all rights 300£
Mr Buchanan will complete The New Abelard by June 15^th.
——
The City of Dream to be published half profits.
——

[Collection page no. 27 - 29.
‘wish’ changed to ‘want’ between ‘from which I’ and ‘to divert my gaze’.
‘great as it my faith’ (Buchanan’s mistake, not mine)
Item 3 of the Proposition, after ‘The sum of £250’ a phrase has been inserted above and then crossed out.
The reverse of Buchanan’s Proposition is written in another hand and is presumably Andrew Chatto’s agreement to the terms laid out.
There appears to be a comment in pencil written across the top of the first page, which begins ‘Buchanan over 100 letters’, which I presume is written by a librarian or the original compiler of the collection.

Buchanan had two theatrical failures in London in April 1882. The Shadow of the Sword, which had been touring the provinces since its premiere in Brighton on 9th May 1881, only survived for a fortnight at the Olympic Theatre, where it ran from 8th to 20th April. To some extent Buchanan had washed his hands of this production, which he claimed had been rewritten by John Coleman, and there was a frank exchange of views on the matter in the pages of The Era. The other failure, and the one I believe Buchanan is referring to in the letter, was Lucy Brandon, which ran for just a week of afternoon performances at the Imperial Theatre, from 8th to 15th April. This would have been more important to Buchanan since, as well as featuring Harriett Jay in the title role, he had also invested some of his own money in the piece - £76 12s. 9d. to be precise (Buchanan’s attempts to retrieve his money landed the managers of the Imperial in the bankruptcy court in October, 1882). During the dispute with John Coleman in the pages of The Era, Buchanan mentioned Lucy Brandon in a letter published on 29th April:

“Some months ago the managers of the Imperial Theatre accepted my play of Lucy Brandon, agreed to mount it liberally, to procure a first-class company, and to “run it for, at least, five weeks.” As a guarantee of good faith they introduced me to their “monied” partner, who also subscribed my agreement. To make a long story short, this man of money turned out in good time to be a man of straw—or a man, at all events, who cared not a straw for his liabilities; and the piece was hardly produced when the storm burst. In the innocence of my heart, I had disbursed considerable sums, to tide the management over “temporary” difficulties while their capitalist was “realising.” Every penny of the first week’s takings was spent in paying old arrears, and when Saturday came there was no “treasury” either for the unfortunate author, who was so much out of pocket, or for the still more unfortunate artistes, who had laboured so zealously to make the drama the success I still affirm it to have been.”

The New Abelard commenced serialisation in The Gentleman’s Magazine (which was published by Chatto & Windus) in January, 1883. It was published in book form in April, 1884. Rather than being published first, Foxglove Manor appeared later, in September, 1884. The City of Dream was not published until March, 1888.

The mention of the life insurance policy is interesting since Buchanan’s father (made bankrupt in 1860) used life insurance policies as security for loans for his newspaper publishing business.]

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16. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 28th April [1882].

12 Buckingham Palace Road
                             S.W.
April 28

Dear Sirs,

                   Please add enclosed prefatory note to Vol 1 of Madeline.
         Will you also see that the first vol contains a page of critical opinions on ‘God & the Man’?

                   Truly yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 30.
Written on black-edged notepaper.]

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17. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 4th May [1882].

12 Buckingham Palace Road
                             S.W.
May 4

Dear Sirs,

                   I thought you meant to suppress the sheets “A Poet Sketch-Book”—& instead of the fragments, to print the “Land of Lorne” intact. I think this is much the best plan. I could put in a new preface &c.—& just now, when the public is exercised so much ab^t the Skye evictions, the book should sell well.

                   Truly yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 31.
Written on black-edged notepaper.]

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18. Letter to Albert C. Keene. 5th May [1882].

12 Buckingham Palace Rd
                             S.W.
May 5.

Dear Sir,

                   Please write to Messrs Chatto & Windus, mentioning my name, & I think they will send you a set of my books for your Library—to which I wish all good luck.

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Albert C. Keene Esq

[Collection page no. 32.
Written on black-edged notepaper.]

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19. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 14th May [1882].

Hôtel de la Grande Bretagne
14 Rue Caumartin
Paris
May 14.

Dear Sirs,

                   Very many thanks for your kindness in sending the Bill, which I shall try to cash. You may implicitly rely on my performance of my promise in this matter.
         Your letter ab^t proofs did not reach me. I will post the “Prose Selections” on to-night.
         Would you kindly send a copy of Madeline to my mother? –

M^rs Buchanan
     Westward Ho
     Southend-on-Sea
         Essex.

         I shall be glad also if you would kindly forward me, registered, the portion of the long poem I left with you—as I frequently have to refer to it.

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 33.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
Beneath the date, ‘(23)’ is written in another hand, presumably indicating the date when C. &. W. received or replied to the letter.
There is a vertical line drawn through the third paragraph and Mrs. Buchanan’s address, which, judging by other letters in the collection, indicates that Buchanan’s request has been carried out.

It would appear from this letter that Buchanan’s mother did not accompany him on his trip to France. ‘Westward Ho’ was a boarding house at Cliftonville Terrace, Prittlewell, (Southend-on-Sea), Essex, where Mrs. Buchanan was also living when the census was taken on 3rd April, 1881.
I also find it amusing that Buchanan (who was well acquainted with the wilds of Oban and Rossport), writes in his letter of 23rd April, “I wish to go away at once into the wilderness” and chooses Paris and Boulogne.]

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20. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 18th May [1882].

30 Boulevard S^te Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
France
May 18

Dear Sirs,

                   Please post me, & return to above address (where I shall be till Sunday) a copy of Selections & one of Madeline. After Sunday, I go on to Paris.
         Will you kindly let M^r Barnett Smith have a copy of the Ballads of Life, & of the new novel?

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 34.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
After ‘30’ in the address something, possibly another number, has been crossed out.
‘have’ is inserted between ‘Smith’ and ‘a copy’.
A vertical line has been drawn through the centre of the text of the letter, and to the right another line with a ‘B’ at the top, presumably both made by the recipient.

On the same day Buchanan wrote a letter to Hall Caine about the death of Rossetti.
George Barnett Smith had written an article for The Contemporary Review in 1873 full of extravagant praise of Buchanan.]

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21. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 25th May [1882].

Hôtel de la Grande Bretagne
14, Rue Caumartin
Paris.
May 25.

Dear Sirs,

                   In reference to Land of Lorne. I have just had forwarded the letter in which you say you have procured a copy. I think, before printing, I had better go through it, as there is some superfluous matter; and if you will post me the 2 vols, I will return them in 2 days. Please do not, however, send them here—as I think of leaving. I will write in the course of a post or two with instructions.

                   Truly yours
                   Rob^t Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 35.
Written on black-edged notepaper.]

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22. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 8th June [1882].

30 Boulevard Saint Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
France
June 8.

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   I should have posted you the M.S. yesterday, and kept the letter of my promise; but the English governess in Paris, to whom I gave part of Vol II to copy, as well as Vol I (which you have already seen) has been slower than I expected, & moreover, her copy is, I find, full of blunders. I shall, however, send you without fail the entire story ready for press early next week; and I hope you will consider that, though I have rather broken the letter, I have kept the spirit, of our agreement.
         I hope you will like the story. Only one thing about it strikes me, that it is a little strong for a family magazine or paper; I dont mean that there is any ‘offence in it’, but a tale the hero of which is a naughty clergyman cannot be printed anywhere. You, however, will know where to place it. If there is any difficulty on this account, & you will let me know, you can adhere to the original arrangement and print it in the Gentleman’s—in which case I will get on with the new story in double quick time, & have it in your hands much sooner than we arranged, In this as in all matters, I hope to repay my obligations to you by studying your interests as much as possible.
         Kindly post me here the “Land of Lorne” & I will return it without delay, for press. I have been so busy with the New Abelard that I have been unable to finish sending proofs of a Poets Sketchbook; but I shall lose no time about it now, & it will reach you directly.
         I have seen no reviews of Madeline. I think, if you could give it a good push, it should ‘go’. If you have any notices, I should like to see them—& I will return them at once.
         With kind regards

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Andrew Chatto Esq.

[Collection page no. 36 (actually ‘35’, next page corrected).
Written on black-edged notepaper.
‘to’ inserted between ‘in Paris,’ and ‘whom’.
‘your’ crossed out and ‘my’ inserted above, between ‘to repay’ and ‘obligations’.
‘here’ inserted between ‘post me’ and ‘the “Land of’.
‘ un’ inserted between ‘have been’ and ‘able to finish’.]

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23. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 27th June [1882].

30 Boulevard Ste Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
France
June 27.

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   If I post you Vol I. of the City of Dream, will you put it to press at once, & let me be correcting the proofs? I want it to appear in 3 small vols, as originally intended. We can decide, later on, as to the anonymity. With regard to the philosophical & poetical value of the work, I have not the slightest doubt.
         I posted you, some days ago, the first Vol of the New Abelard & the corrected Land of Lorne. I ought to receive a proof of the title page, prefatory note, & first sheet, of the latter; the rest will be all right.
         Kindly write by return to

                   Yours faithfully
                   Robert Buchanan.

Andrew Chatto Esq.
                                                                                                                                           (over

In 3 vols 8vo, Price 5/ each

The City of Dream:
a New Pilgrimage.

“The old creeds vanish, giving place to new—
Read here what paths God’s Pilgrims now pursue!”

Vol I. Christopolis.
       II. Revolt—The Groves of Pan—The Open Way.
       III. Circling Homeward—the Great Ocean.

[Collection page no. 37 (‘36’ corrected).
Written on black-edged notepaper.
‘at once’ double-underlined.

There is a letter from Buchanan to Nicholas Trübner (27th February, 1880) about The City of Dream which includes a similar scheme for publishing the book in three parts. Buchanan also wanted it published anonymously.]

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24. Letter to Chatto & Windus from Chapman & Hall Limited. 5th July, 1882.

CHAPMAN & HALL LIMITED
11, Henrietta Street,
Covent Garden,
                   W.C.
July 5^th. 1882.

Dear Sirs

                   Our attention has been drawn to an announcement of a new Edition of Buchanan’s “Land of Lorne” to be published by you.
         We beg to say that the Copyright of that book belongs to us, and that we cannot allow your Edition to be published

                   Y^rs. faithfully
                   Fred. Chapman
                   Managing Director.

Mes^rs Chatto & Windus

[Collection page no. 38.
Printed letterhead.]

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25. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 6th July [1882].

30 Boulevard Ste Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
July 6

Dear Sirs,

                   The agreement with M^r Chapman is among my papers in London, but I can assure you that I have described it to you exactly. However, I shall be over on Saturday, & can then, if you like, let you see it.
         Please dont issue the cheap edition of God & the Man without a few lines of preface (which I have written) & Rossetti’s name in Dedication.

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs. Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 40.
Written on black-edged notepaper.]

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26. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 8th July [1882].

30 Boulevard Ste Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
France
July 8.

Dear Sirs,

                   I am writing to Messrs Chapman & Hall by this post. The copyright of Land of Lorne does not belong to them. My agreement gave them leave to print & sell a library edition of 1200 copies, in sets of 2 vols. Shortly after the publication, when the library edition was still in the market, I wanted to print a cheap edⁿ & M^r Chapman said I might do so if I paid him a small sum; but of course he has now no right over the book.
         I return herewith the first sheet. It is the title page, preface &c. that I specially want to see.
         I am still without a reply from M^r Chatto rê my poem, which I proposed sending at once for press. Will you ask him to write to me, or write to me yourselves officially, without delay.
         I shall be very much obliged if you will post me a copy of “God & the Man” & one of “Child of Nature”. If you would send me at the same time M^r Swinburne’s new poems & the current Gent. Mag^ne, I should take it as a special favour.

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

[Collection page no. 41.
Written on black-edged notepaper.
‘yourselves’ inserted between ‘write to me’ and ‘officially’.
The final paragraph has a large bracket at the left-hand side and a faint diagonal line struck through, presumably indicating that Chatto & Windus sent the requested books.]

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27. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 11th August [1882].

30 Boulevard Ste Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
Aug^t 11

Dear Sirs,

                   On receipt of this kindly hold all letters & correspondence till further orders, as I am leaving here for England.

                   Truly yours
                   Rob^t Buchanan.

Messrs. Chatto & Windus

[Collection page no. 42.
Written on black-edged notepaper.]

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28. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 15th August [1882].

30 Boulevard Ste Beuve
Boulogne-sur-Mer
Aug^t 15

Dear Sirs,

                   The copy of New Abelard will be posted to-morrow – It should have reached you Saturday, but for an accident to some of the slips (made by a servant in London) which made re-writing necessary.

                   Faithfully yours
                   Robert Buchanan.

Messrs. Chatto & Windus

[Collection page no. 43.]

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29. Letter to Chatto & Windus. 20th August [1882].

Westward Ho
Southend-on-Sea
Aug^t 20

Dear Sirs,

                   Enclosed I send the preface & dedication—please observe that the former dedication stands intact, and is followed by the new verses. If you can post me a proof by return, I will correct & send back by first post.

                   Truly yours ever
                   Rob^t Buchanan.

Messrs Chatto & Windus.

         Please send double proofs. — I called twice on Chapman but could not find him. Shall call again to-morrow or Tuesday.

[Collection page no. 44.
Written on black-edged notepaper.

This refers to the new edition of God and the Man which contained a second verse dedicated to Dante Gabriel Rossetti and a new preface. The new verse is dated ‘August 1882’ and the preface, ‘August 18, 1882’.]

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30. Letter to Chatto & Windus from Freiherr Christian Bernhard von Tauchnitz (Publisher). 7th September, 1882.

Leipzig,
Sept 7, 82.

Dear Sirs,

                   In reply to your kind letter of Aug 30, permit me to complete my last lines by the following.
         It is quite correct that before a year or so you offered “God and the Man” to us and that we did not accept it. When Mr. Buchanan offered his works he made a reproach that his books were not yet included in the Tauchnitz Edition, in the same letter also wished my answer to be directed to your care—which has been done. Could I have another belief as that the contents of Mr. Buchanan’s letter were the consequence of the former refusal and that his offer had been made with your full consent and knowledge? — Also, pardon me this remark, could I think that you had disposed of the Continental copyright without giving the Author the least notice, the more as in the—relative few—cases in which I received the right from the Publisher instead of the Author, I always found the greatest accordance between both.
         Please judge yourself whether anyone could act more bone fide, and whether a disagreeable controversy could arise more unexpectedly?
         Nevertheless I am ready to a money sacrifice, as I decided already, to come to a good end. As I telegraphed yesterday it cannot be difficult to come between you and Mr. Grädener to an understanding, his edition, I certainly believe is not yet being printed or at least just in the beginning of it.
         Believe me always,

                   Yours faithfully
                   Tauchnitz.

[Collection page no. 45 and 46.
‘When’ written above ‘As’ between ‘accept it.’ and ‘Mr. Buchanan’.

The copy of the last page was not perfect, so between Herr Tauchnitz’s English and my eyes, I had to make a couple of educated guesses. However, I did come across the following passage on page 207 of Mark Twain in England by Dennis Welland (Chatto & Windus, 1978), which sheds a little more light on this letter:

“Robert Buchanan sold to Tauchnitz the rights in his God and Man which Chatto, to whom Buchanan’s contract had explicitly assigned all rights, had disposed of to Grädener. This problem was resolved by Chatto’s agreeing to relieve Tauchnitz of the copies already printed and to find a market for them.”]

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31. Letter to Andrew Chatto. 8th September [1882].

Westward Ho
Southend-on-Sea
Sept. 8.

Dear M^r Chatto,

                   Since I saw you I have been very ill with a sort of influenza-fever, which has altogether interfered with Part 3 of the Story. I am still very shaky, & am going out to-day for the first time. If you will suffer me, I will deliver two parts in a week or two, & so overtake the delay—instead of hurrying the completion of one part now.
         I hope you will remember to give “God & the Man” a separate adv., with a couple of lines of criticism. It stands on different ground from novels generally, whatever its merits may be.
         As soon as the “Hebrid Isles” is ready, I should like a copy or two.

                   Faithfully yours ever
                   Robert Buchanan.

Andrew Chatto Esq.

[Collection page no. 47 and 48.
The first page has a black border.

The new edition of The Land of Lorne: including the cruise of the ‘Tern’ to the Outer Hebrides was retitled The Hebrid Isles: Wanderings in the Land of Lorne and the Outer Hebrides and was published by Chatto & Windus in December 1882.]

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32. Buchanan’s proposed changes to Chatto & Windus’ initial advert for his works. Undated.

[on reverse]

The following are already published –

Ballads of Life, Love & Humour. With frontispiece by Arthur Hughes
Selected Poems. With frontispiece.
The Book of Orm
St Abe & his Seven Wives. With frontispiece by Houghton.
White Rose & Red: a Love Story.

M^r Buchanan’s Novels.
Now ready, 8vo, Price 3/6

God & the Man:
         A Romance.
         Cheap second edition.

Uniform with the above,

A Child of Nature.

Also, in 3 vols,

The Martyrdom of Madeline.

___

Chatto & Windus, Piccadilly, W.

[Collection page no. 52.
‘Robt Buchanan’ is written below the text in another hand.

The advert is from the front of Ballads of Life, Love & Humour (published in March, 1882) and this is presumably Buchanan’s editing of the copy, crossing out the list of ‘Volumes’ and the last line referring to their order of appearance, and substituting his preferred version on the reverse. However, the item is undated and occurs in a rather confused section of the collection, so, although it probably belongs earlier (perhaps April or May), I thought it best to place it at the end of this section.]

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The Chatto & Windus Letters - continued

2. 1883 - 1885.

Robert Buchanan’s Letters to Chatto & Windus - contents